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I'm not talking about tripping balls, I am talking about him eating candy bars to fix his sugar levels, that seems incredibly dangerous to me - unless they are those special candy bars, but there is nothing said about that.

thefourthman wrote:I'm not talking about tripping balls, I am talking about him eating candy bars to fix his sugar levels, that seems incredibly dangerous to me - unless they are those special candy bars, but there is nothing said about that.

If a diabetic's blood sugar gets too low, a candy bar would bring it back up pretty quick. It happens to my mother sometimes, but instead of a candy bar she'll drink some orange juice.

I got the same exact sentiment when i read the book. She was on her cell while driving and not really paying attention to him also she blamed their current lifestyle on the dad which is not what a good parent does.

Chubbles wrote:I got the same exact sentiment when i read the book. She was on her cell while driving and not really paying attention to him also she blamed their current lifestyle on the dad which is not what a good parent does.

the dad is dead.
She is a single mom. She would be distracted... she may not be the best,.

like I said I need to give it another read, but there were some oddities that I wanted to discuss.

Chubbles wrote:ya i didn't really care if it was 100% accurate, i just understand he's got a medical problem and it somehow leads to him entering this other world. Diabete's or not the point got across.

see, the only reason I know that is from reading other shit. Otherwise I would think I was just reading I Kill Giants again, which this is very similar to.

thefourthman wrote:see, the only reason I know that is from reading other shit. Otherwise I would think I was just reading I Kill Giants again, which this is very similar to.

I agree the solicit wasn't the best in terms of meshing with the story but that's probably why I liked it more than you. I didn't read the solicit, I just saw Morrison and 1 dollar so it's a buy. Plus like i said in my review I Kill Giants was one of my favorite reads so if this is similar it's already got a leg up with me.

Chubbles wrote:I agree the solicit wasn't the best in terms of meshing with the story but that's probably why I liked it more than you. I didn't read the solicit, I just saw Morrison and 1 dollar so it's a buy. Plus like i said in my review I Kill Giants was one of my favorite reads so if this is similar it's already got a leg up with me.

see, normally I don't read solicitations, but after the preview (which I also don't normally read, but it was so pretty) - I was like what the hell was that? and then I find out the kid is diabetic and then I read the issue.... it's like reading Countdown and then getting Final Crisis...

Also, I like I Kill Giants and was kind of upset at how much this apes it. This is like most things I have read by Grant Morrison, I want to like it, but it just doesn't do it for me. But my biggest problem with the issue is the weird phrasing and typos, it is literally difficult to read in a few places - and not because it is like Toni Morrison and more difficult than an average book, but because it goes in and out of making sense.

Joe the BarbarianSo, as a $1 comic, Joe the Barbarian is an amazing book. The art by Sean Murphy is rich and textured and beautifully detailed. He draws a number of full-page panels and demonstrates in them his ability to illustrate complex scenes with a perfect blend of realism and dynamic stylization. The page with the kid walking to his house as the bus drives off is simply amazing. A real masterpiece in a technical sense. Murphy has been on fire artistically since he did two issues of Hellblazer about a year ago. So I am very pleased that he will have the chance now to draw a long story and show off his considerable talents.

But that said, as an introductory chapter to an eight-issue story, I'm not sure what to make of Joe the Barbarian. We are introduced to Joe, a sickly teenage kid who is the cliched artist-type tormented by the cliched school bullies. We see that Joe comes from a broken home and that he considers his attic-bedroom a refuge from the ugliness of the outside world. And we also see Joe suffering a brief hallucinatory break from reality, where his toys come to life and introduce him to a nightmarish world. But we don't know where this story is headed or what this book is really about. In other words, there are a lot of introductions but not much action or development or even basic foreshadowing.

On one hand, it's difficult to rate Grant Morrison's story so far, because it's unfair to expect too much from the first chapter in an eight-chapter story. But on the other hand, aside from a few snappy lines ("This fairytale's on a one-way trip to hell"), nothing in the story made me want to read issue two. Joe is not particularly interesting as a character. Hallucinations are not particularly novel (especially in Grant Morrison stories). And talking toys have been done before. So, to be honest, if the art weren't so damn good, I don't think I'd make any effort to pick up future issues. It's especially hard to be enthusiastic about this book because it's poorly edited; it has typos, repeat words, and some very choppy dialogue in one key scene.

Joe the Barbarian may turn into a wonderfully written series. But the first issue is a very, very, very slow start.

I thought the mom was written to be kind of a poor paternal institute. She's obviously wrapped up in her own world and barely gives Joe a second thought. Kind of like what I see in the courthouse all the time.

Max Blyss wrote:Months and months and months and the whole thing is still just an intersection at Dipshit Lane & Chip on my Shoulder Ave.

starlord wrote:But this is what I've noticed about the difference between his mainstream and his own stuff. Please bare with this analogy.

It's like if he took over Sweethearts and decided to eliminate all the flavors and change them with: Coffee, pumpkin pie, sardine, and lasagna flavor. Then turns around and makes his own brand of sweethearts with grape, cherry, orange, and lime flavor.

I don't get why he does that.

See the one thing I really like about Morrison is that his stuff is always his. ASS, New X-Men, Batman, Seaguy, Final Crisis... he does it his way. I absolutely love his Batman although I think RIP is clumsy. I like the ideas of FC but hate the execution. New X-Men is the only run of mutant books besides X-Factor that I like. He isn't afraid to do things and for whatever reason editorial lets him have a free hand. It makes his books exciting, you never know what is gonna happen.

Then you take someone like Hickman who had a brave, new voice at Image only to be neutered when he came to Marvel. Sure he is better than the other people that have written FF for a while and Secret Warriors is awesome, but they don't feel like his previous work. I have the same problem with Remender (outside of Frakencastle) and Fraction to an extent (although he has become a better writer, if a weaker voice).

Morrison isn't afraid to try things. Sometimes he fails (Final Crisis), sometimes it is clumsy but admirable (Batman), sometimes it is brilliant (All Star Superman)... but it is always interesting and new.